The inventors are the named inventors of international patent application PCT/US2006/016708 for a “Backpack and Waist Bag Carrying System,” published as WO 2006/119230 and claiming priority from U.S. provisional application 60/676,257 filed on 30 Apr. 2005. The backpack and waist bag carrying system described in these applications are believed to be the first system in which a waist bag may be easily deployed to the front of the user while the user is wearing the backpack on his or her back. The contents of international application PCT/US2006/016708 and provisional application U.S. 60/676,257 are incorporated by reference in this application as if fully set forth herein. U.S. non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 11/667,582 was filed as the national phase of international application PCT/US2006/016708 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,690,582 B2.